An inside look at the faith that guides the all-stars.

The St. Louis Cardinals have long been one of the most successful franchises in the major leagues. They have won 11 World Series titles and some of the most famous players in the history of the game have worn the storied "Birds on the Bat" uniform.

While that on-field success has been well documented, "Intentional Walk" is the first book which goes beyond the story of what happens on the field to take an in-depth look at the men inside the Cardinal uniforms, and examine how their strong Christian faith is one of the driving forces behind their success.

"Intentional Walk" features the stories of Adam Wainwright, David Freese, Lance Berkman, Matt Holliday, Carlos Beltran, Jason Motte and other members of the 2012 Cardinals, written as those players and the rest of the team tried to repeat the 2011 world championship. The book talks about how they became Christians and offers their testimony about what it means for them to have God play such a prominent role in their lives.

Playing for first-year manager Mike Matheny, a strong Christian as well, these men talk about their success and failure, about the challenges that come from playing baseball at the highest level, and how thankful and blessed they are to have that God-given ability. In the end, however, what is far more important to them is their life-long relationship they have established with Jesus Christ.

Foreword by Mike Krzyzewski, Duke's Men Basketball Coach

A celebrated coach reveals the secrets to building a fierce competitor

At age 26, Joanne P. McCallie, a.k.a. Coach P, began her career at Maine, where in the span of eight years, she elevated the women's basketball program to a very competitive team that outdrew the men's crowds, a rarity in college sports. Over her tenure, she created the Choice Not Chance (CNC) philosophy, training kids how to think and focus on making the correct choices in life. She imparted her passionate philosophy to all of her players and now brings it to her efforts as head coach at Duke. "Choice Not Chance"highlights McCallie's lessons for building a fierce competitor, such as "Going against the grain," "Never become satisfied," and "Enjoy the prospect of getting better daily."

The CNC philosophy is widely used by McCallie, her staff, and players, who are very active in the community speaking about "CNC."Joanne P. McCallie is head coach of the Duke Women's Basketball team and was the ACC Coach of the Year in 2010McCallie became the first coach in Division I history to be crowned champion in four different conferences, as well as the first coach in NCAA history to garner coach of the year accolades in four different leaguesA native of Brunswick, Maine, McCallie owns a career mark of 431-174 and is entering her 20th year as a head coach at Maine, Michigan State and Duke; as a coach and player, she has led her teams to 15 conference titles, 19 NCAA Tournament appearances, seven NCAA Sweet 16 appearances, five NCAA Elite Eight appearances, three NCAA Final Four appearances and three NCAA Championship game appearancesDuring the 2004-05 season at Michigan State, she won the Big Ten Regular Season and Tournament Championship en route to a National Championship game appearance. For her efforts she was named the Associated Press National Coach of the Year

McCallie has taught her teams to play with passion and fight hard for recognition, and her teams have achieved remarkable success. Apply her wisdom to your teams, your employees, and your own life.

The third in the Diamond Communications series, this little paperback offers insight, wisdom and humor tailored especially for fans of the St. Louis Cardinals.

It seems unlikely that James Naismith, who grew up playing "Duck on the Rock" in the rural community of Almonte, Canada, would invent one of America's most popular sports. But Rob Rains and Hellen Carpenter's fascinating, in-depth biography James Naismith: The Man Who Invented Basketball shows how this young man--who wanted to be a medical doctor, or if not that, a minister (in fact, he was both)--came to create a game that has endured for over a century. James Naismith reveals how Naismith invented basketball in part to find an indoor activity to occupy students in the winter months. When he realized that the key to his game was that men could not run with the ball, and that throwing and jumping would eliminate the roughness of force, he was on to something. And while Naismith thought that other sports provided better exercise, he was pleased to create a game that "anyone could play." With unprecedented access to the Naismith archives and documents, Rains and Carpenter chronicle how Naismith developed the 13 rules of basketball, coached the game at the University of Kansas--establishing College Basketball in the process--and was honored for his work at the 1936 Olympic games in Berlin. Rob Rains is a former National League beat writer for USA Today's Baseball Weekly and for three years covered the St. Louis Cardinals for the St. Louis Globe-Democrat. He is the author or co-author of autobiographies or biographies of Tony La Russa, Ozzie Smith, Mark McGwire, Jack Buck, Red Schoendienst and many other sports celebrities. Hellen Carpenter is the granddaughter of James Naismith. For more than 4 years she had in her possession more than 2 documents from Naismith's files which were instrumental in crafting this biography.